O'Neil defends 'misunderstood' Cunha ahead of Ipswich's clash with Man Utd

Ipswich Town manager Gary O’Neil has come to the defence of Manchester United forward Matheus Cunha, describing his former Wolverhampton Wanderers striker as ‘misunderstood’ ahead of the two sides’ Premier League meeting this weekend.

Cunha was involved in a pitch-side altercation in December 2024 during his time at Wolves, when a scuffle with a member of Ipswich’s backroom staff left a security guard’s glasses broken. The Brazilian subsequently apologised for the incident. O’Neil, who was Wolves manager at the time and has since taken charge at Ipswich, confirmed the matter has been put to rest.

“Chris is still here,” O’Neil said at his pre-match press conference, referring to the security guard involved. “Cunha obviously apologised for that. I know Chris has forgiven him. Chris has forgiven me for allowing Cunha to do that as well, if it even was my fault.”

The December clash was not the only controversy to follow Cunha during his spell in the Midlands. He was also handed a ban for headbutting Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez in an FA Cup tie. Yet O’Neil was emphatic that those incidents do not define the player.

“He’s not that volatile. He’s a great guy. He’s passionate,” O’Neil said. “I loved working with him. I loved the challenge of teaching him, because he was unbelievably raw — not technically, he was unbelievably good technically. But his tactical stuff and his understanding of what the team needed from him needed a lot of work. He committed to it. He was fantastic for us.”

O’Neil credited the work done with Cunha at Wolves as a significant achievement of his tenure there, acknowledging it helped the Brazilian earn his move to Old Trafford. “He’s maybe misunderstood. I wouldn’t describe him as volatile at all,” he added. “He wears his heart on his sleeve. I suppose the game can sometimes take you to places emotionally.”

Despite the warm words, O’Neil made clear where his priorities lie this weekend. “Matheus is a good guy, but he’s playing for Manchester United now and I’ve got at least 27 people in there that are far further up my importance list than Matheus Cunha anymore,” he said. “I’m desperate to beat him and send him a cheeky late-night Sunday text saying, ‘unlucky Matheus’. That would be nice.”